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Back to the First Principles page http://www.firstpr.com.au - where you can read of many technical, consumer advocacy things, but also some non-intellectual, aesthetic delights such as my 21 metre Sliiiiiiiiiinky and some photos from a trance techno dance-party in the forest.
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This is the most popular page of this web-site - with 150 people a
day. But who are you? Where did you find the URL of this page? Please
write and
say something: rw@firstpr.com.au
.
I have more corset ads - mainly from 1950s and 1960s magazines. I could
be
persuaded to spend a day scanning and make another page or two.
Lets begin with an picture of a splendid woman modelling a Goddess Enfold
strapless bra which can be purchased here:
http://www.bway.net/orchard_bras/gd.html .
Robin Whittle 17 September 1999 rw@firstpr.com.au
12 June 2000: Links updated. Added Dita images and 26 images of girdles
which
can be purchased on the Net.
11 November 2000: More links added.
August/September 2001: more images added and broken into four pages.
Page 1: <<< You are here.
- From my collection of corsetry advertisements
- Some images of the fabulous Dita von Teese wearing a corset
- The Golden Age of (Australian) Corsetry by D.A. Cooke
- Brassieres: An engineering Miracle, article from 1964 by Edward Nanas
- Shapely and sensual girdles and the like from Lingerie Direct in the USA.
- More corsets from various sites
- Links to kindred sites
Click the small images of the corset ads to see larger and fuller versions. File names include the X and Y dimensions in pixels.
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While support can be pleasant and healthy, it is not unheard
of for women to exclaim "My girdle is killing me!". Since 1907
(according to the history "Golden Age of Corsetry: see below
) Berlei has been a highly regarded Australian corsetry
manufacturer. This full page ad in Woman, 2 November 1942
depicts an industrial strength
corsellette, with some rousing rhetoric such as: "For whether she rears
a
family or mans a rangefinder, a woman needs the physical support of a
good
foundation." and "Amongst other munitions of war, Berlei are still
making
foundations.". The ad is titled:
An essential aid to 'WOMAN POWER' |
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Due to a lapse in my filing system, I don't have the date for this ad for Berlei foundations. "A Berlei Foundation preserves, corrects and glorifies." |
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This Warners advertisement is from the September 1955 issue
of
the large format, beautifully printed, US magazine Ladies Home
Journal
. According to the quiz previously
at bway.net/orchard_bras/bra_menu.html
(but not at the new site http://www.orchardcorset.com
) the "Merry Widow" term
comes
from a 1952 film of this name starting Lana Turner. These are
nip-in-the-waist
corsets which sit on the hips rather than cover them, and extend
upwards
to the midriff and breasts - without shoulder straps. They are
typically
shown in advertisements over an underskirt, but this is an
artifice
to focus attention on the garment. It takes a special kind of
woman
to get into this contrivances: a very narrow-waisted one! Regular
tight-lacing
can significantly reduce the waist measurements, but despite how
attractive
it looks (to a point) I don't think it can be regarded as
healthy.
There is a great resurgence in interest in corsetry, including bespoke
corsets
of the most elaborate designs. Women like to be held, by a man
and
by the clothes which they like so close to them.
Click here to read the text of this advert. Warners still make excellent intimate apparel. I have been unable to find them on the Net, but I did find some photos of their current products here . |
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Upon her return from an extended lunch break (no doubt
occasioned
by some once-only anomaly in the pricing and availability of feminine
clothing at one or more distant retail outlets) my jaunty assistant Ms.
Lydia Tingle will remind me of the year in which this exquisite Warners
merry widow advertisement
first appeared. There is a vast range of aesthetics in the design
of
feminine clothing, and an equally expansive universe of mythologies and
resonances
which enliven this vital art form. While the aesthetics of images
on
this page range from the warm and yummy to the sharp, lurid and
bizarre,
this image rings all the bells in the twin towers of the the most
exalted
feminine cathedral - the towers devoted firstly to physical and
mystical
flight and secondly to the state of being an angel.
You can read the inspirational caption here. I hope in the future to scan this image so as to more successfully ignore its screened nature. |
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From the March 1960 issue of English magazine Woman's
Journal comes perhaps the most memorable corset image I know
of. Who said corsetry
was a male plot to oppress women? Try telling that to this
splendid,
almost imperious woman! Everything here, top-to-toe, is
inspired.
Firstly Mother Nature's handiwork with these bright, strong, shapely
women.
Secondly the exquisite design of the girdle and bra, with their
cross-over
panels. Thirdly the absolute, direct, symmetrical stance of the
woman,
together with the clear and authoritative gaze of the Berlei
corsetiere.
Note the corsetiere's intelligent eyes and smile. Note her
efficient
hairdo. Note the model's every strong, full, womanly curve and
her
prefect, formal yet relaxed-looking hair. Now contemplate her
face.
It signals inner peace and contemplation. Knowing. She has
no
need to smile - no need to consider what others may think. All
womanly
power resides with her, focused and framed by her girdle and bra.
The
effects are clearly intoxicating. Her eyes are languid. Her
sensorium
is in calm rapture and her spirit meditates on this perfect alignment
of
physicality, corsetry and her own elevated destiny in all that lies
beyond.
I am convinced her name is Brunnhilde.
Here is a detail and a larger version of this striking advertisement. sarong-detail-419x700.jpg (41k) sarong-1098x1587.jpg (190k). |
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Fredericks of
Hollywood is a renowned and long-established purveyor of bras,
girdles
and the like. Here is a series of four advertisements from the US
magazine Movie Mirror in the early 1960s. This magazine
featured
advertisements from a number of other risqué retailer, but they
are
outflanked by Fredericks. This magazine was a gossip rag
and
in its rear pages jostle ads for such items as one dollar blackhead
removers,
breast enhancement programs, false teeth and pellet firing Luger
automatics.
Each of these Fredericks ads is a page-full of detail and the
image
you will see when you click on the pictures to the left will more than
fill
your screen. At about 380 k bytes, it will take a minute or two
to
arrive (unless you have a cable modem), but there is lots to see.
This is from September 1961. |
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The Fredericks advertisements from Movie Mirror issues of February 1962, February 1963 and February 1965. |
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It's November 1965, and in the Australian mag Woman's Day , surf's up! One of the most happily preposterous corset adverts, to be sure! Note that these two surfer girls are wearing garments which are identical (except for the fine detail of fabric and trim) to the timeless bra and corset of their more cerebral and sublime older sister Brunnhilde over five years beforehand: the BerleiSarong line. Unless I am mistaken, these girls are strutting their stuff at Bondi too! |
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I have done my homework in the field of bras and corsets, and
I make the most of every opportunity to engage in the noble calling of
breast worship. I have direct experience with this particular
item, the
Sabrina (ref 3258) bra of Simone Pérèle. Twas
a black
one, and the breasts they enlaced were as delectable as those depicted
here,
and belonged to a woman whose sensibilities in this regard were second
to
none. I modified the bra with a teensy little bit of judicious
stitching
in the middle - and then it was perfect.
This beautiful advertisement appeared in the October 1986 issue of Australian Cosmopolitan. I found the Simone Perele web site in the members listing of La Fédération Française de la Lingerie et du Balnéaire – but a thorough search found no sign of Sabrina. I cannot imagine a more exquisite bra than this Sabrina. Those wishing to research this matter more closely should click here. |
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Here are some girdles from the 1991 Fredericks of Hollywood catalogue. Two have fanny padding and one has absolutely nothing in the rear at all! |
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A bright add for a seemingly transparent lace and pink satin
bra from Hickory. I guess early 1950s. |
Page 1: <<< You are here.
- From my collection of corsetry advertisements
- Some images of the fabulous Dita von Teese wearing a corset
- The Golden Age of (Australian) Corsetry by D.A. Cooke
- Brassieres: An engineering Miracle, article from 1964 by Edward Nanas
- Shapely and sensual girdles and the like from Lingerie Direct in the USA.
- More corsets from various sites
- Links to kindred sites
